Docherty: Pontiac decision may have to wait until next year

As General Motors prepares for its June 1 bankruptcy-or-viability deadline, the decision on what to do with Pontiac is sitting on the back burner. In fact, dealers may have to wait until next year to find out what the General has in store.

Or so says Susan Docherty, vice president of GM's Buick-Pontiac-GMC group. "The Pontiac decision is pretty low on the priority list for right now," Docherty told Automotive News. "The decision we make for Pontiac is not going to be the savior for GM."

Previous talk of focusing the brand on cars and even on Pontiac's 'driving excitement' performance background sprang out of GM's viability plan, submitted to Congress last December. One word in particular - 'niche' - drove a lot of the talk, and has led to rampant speculation that Pontiac might go RWD-only or other such drastic measures. "I think if we had to write the viability plan over again, that word would have been on the delete button," said Docherty.

Nevertheless, Docherty announced last month that the decision to end the Pontiac Torrent SUV was part of a larger decision to focus Pontiac on its cars.

That focus might not be a bad idea, considering the Torrent's sales were dismal at best - down over 50% in February - while the G8 has seen record numbers despite the downturn, rising 27% on its previous monthly best in February.